Students who wish to be licensed in Comprehensive Secondary Science (as distinct from Earth
Science) must also complete BIOL 105, PHYS 131, and PHYS 231. Students seeking Middle
School Science Licensure must complete the requirements for Earth Science with Teacher
Licensure as well as BIOL 105 and PHYS 131. Also a second area of concentration, preferably in
mathematics, is required for the middle school license. See the appropriate advisor in the
Education Department for additional information about teacher licensure.

Impact Statement: a. This change was initiated through discussions with Dr. Bill Miller of the Environmental
Studies Department. The chairs of Environmental Studies, Physics, and Education concur with this
course change.

b.
This change will not significantly impact future staffing needs of any of the affected
departments. ASTR 105 is often taken by science licensure students because of its broad applicability to
science teaching. In addition, since both courses are staffed by the Physics Department, the change will
not affect the allocation of resources in that department. The number of students expected to enter the
affected licensure programs is low.

Rationale:The inclusion of PHYS 131 in the original proposal was based on our interpretation of NC Department of
Public Instruction (DPI) requirements for Earth Science Teachers. However, DPI has indicated that the
astronomy course is necessary, and they have given us provisional approval for the substitution of
astronomy for physics. The substitution is conceptually appropriate for the Earth Science concentration
because knowledge of stellar systems provides a broad context for the study of the environmental
systems of earth.